Staple driving machine



Web" 11, 336. E KUQH, JR 2,,U3L32Q STAPLE DRIVING MACHINE Filed June 1, 19-"5l Patented Feb. 18, 1936 v NITED STATES STAPLE DRIVING MACHINE Charles F. Kuch, Jr., Norwalk, Conn., assignor to The E. H. Hotchkiss Company, Norwalk, Conn, a corporation of Connecticut Application June 1, 1931, Serial No. 541,192

2 Claims.

This invention relates to staple driving machines, particularly that type of machine in which substantially U-shaped staples are driven by a movable plunger, and it is equally adapted for use in machines where the prongs of the staples are bent over or clinched against the work, usually called stapling machines, or where the staples are merely driven into an object such as where they are driven through a tag for attaching it to a box or casing, usually called. tacking machines.

In this type of machine there is usually a housing having a raceway in which the driving plunger is reciprocable, and there are means for feeding the staples successively into the raceway to a position under the plunger so that they will be carried down the raceway and the prongs driven into the Work on downward movement of the plunger. With machines hitherto built a great deal of trouble has been experienced by the staples becoming wedged in the raceway thus clogging the machine. As the staple must pass through the raceway they are ordinarily guided therein and only sufiicient clearance is left for free operation of the machine. It will be evident that should a staple be fed to its position under the plunger with one or more of its prongs bent laterally out of the proper position, when the plunger is depressed this prong or prongs will not pass properly into the raceway, but will become jammed against the walls thereof and particularly the walls at the upper part of the raceway where the staple enters the raceway, thus clogging the machine and preventing further operation until this staple has been removed,

which is often quite a difiicult operation.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide means for preventing the staples which do not enter the raceway in proper position from becoming jammed therein and clogging the machine, and more particularly has for an object to provide means for cutting oif a prong or prongs which may be bent laterally out of position, and for removing the cut-off prongs from the machine by separate passages to the rear of the raceway.

With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, combinations and arrangement of parts as will be more fully disclosed in connection with the accompanying drawing.

.In this drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a stapling machine embodying this invention;

Fig. 2 is a front end elevation on a somewhat larger scale with parts broken away to more clearly show the construction;

Fig. 3 is a side view of the front of the housing with one side wall broken away;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the front end of the 5 guide bar; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view thereof.

In the drawing the invention is shown as applied to a so called stapling machine in which the prongs of the staples are clinched or folded 10.-

against the under surface of the work by means of an anvil, but this is for illustration only, because as is indicated above it is equallyadapted for use with so called tacking machines in which the prongs are not bent or clinched.

The machine shown comprises a base 6 to rest on any suitable support as a table or desk and carrying the usual anvil I having the depressions 8 for clinching the prongs of the staple after being driven through the work, such as sheets of paper 9. When used with a tacking machine this base would be omitted and the staple prongs would be driven into the work without clinching. The base is provided at its rear end with upwardly extending ears in between which is pivoted a housing H on a suitable pivot l2, and a spring compressed plunger l3 tends to hold the forward end of the housing spaced above the anvil 1 as indicated in Fig. 1 for easy insertion of the work.

This housing is open on its under edge in which is inserted a staple supporting and guiding bar M. This bar as shown preferably extends the full length of the housing and projects somewhat from the rear end thereof for easy insertion of the staples usually in the form of connected strips, on to the bar, and by extending between ears H! also forming the means by which the housing is pivoted to the base 6. Means is provided for spacing the upper portions 15 from the walls of the housing to provide a space for free passage of the prongs I 6 of the staples. This may be done by separate strips at the lower sides of the bar, but preferably by making the bar wider at the lower portion ll than at its upper portion [5. It will thus be evident that when the bar is secured in the housing by any suitable means such as cross pins or screws [8 the side walls of the upper portion I5 will be spaced from the walls of the housing forming the passages 50 l 9 for the staple prongs.

At the forward portion of the housing is an upright raceway 20 in which is vertically reciprocable the plunger 2|. This plunger is guided for vertical movements in the housing and is 55 normally held in its upper position by a spring 22. The plunger is operable by any suitable means such as a hand knob 23 secured to its upper end. When in its upper position the lower end 24 of the plunger is spaced above the staples as shown in Fig. 1 so as to permit the forward staple on the strip being fed to a position in the raceway immediately under the lower end of the plunger. Then it will be evident that if the plunger is depressed a staple will be carried downwardly in the raceway by the lower end of the plunger, and the prongs forced into the work. To properly feed the staples to the raceway the forward end 25 of the staple guide bar I4 is placed immediately to the rear side of the race- Way and as a matter of fact forms the rear wall of the raceway. Any suitable means may be provided for feeding the staples forwardly along the guide bar to feed the staples successively to the proper driving position in the raceway under the plunger. That shown comprises a substantially inverted U-shaped follower 26 straddling the top portion l5 of the guide bar and slidable thereon, the front portion of this follower engaging at the rear end the strip of staples indicated at 21 to force them forwardly along the bar. The follower is drawn forwardly by means of a fiat coiled spring 28 mounted in the housing by cross pin 29 and connected to the follower.

It will be evident that in order for the staples to be properly driven they should be guided in upright position in the raceway 20, but should a staple be fed to its position in the raceway under the plunger with one or more of its prongs bent backwardly as indicated in dotted lines Ilia in Fig. 3, and then the plunger depressed the bent prong or prongs of course would not enter the raceway but would be forced backwardly by the lower spacing walls of the guide bar and the staple would become jammed in the raceway and would clog the machine. I overcome this objection by providing means for cutting off the prong or prongs should this happen and carry them from the machine so that there is no chance for the staple to become jammed in the raceway. I secure this effect by providing to the rear of the raceway at the lower part of the spaces !9 and below the prongs of the staples knife edges 30 which extend transversely at the lower part of the spaces IS. A convenient way of providing these knife edges and also provide means for carrying off the cut off prongs of the staples is to cut away a portion of the side spacing portions I l as indicated at 3|, and if this is inclined backwardly and downwardly it will provide the knife edges 30 and will give suflicient support therefor as indicated at 32. This cut away provides passages or chutes 3| leading through the lower wall of the guide bar and the under side of the housing.

It will now be evident that, if when the plunger is depressed either one or both of the prongs of the staple immediately under the plunger is or are bent backwardly so as not to properly enter the raceway as indicated in dotted lines Ilia, Fig. 3, this prong or prongs will be carried backwardly over the knife edges 30 as indicated at IGb, Figs. 3 and 5, and then as the plunger continues its downward movement the lower end of the plunger will cut off the backwardly bent prong or prongs and they will pass downwardly through the passageways 3| as indicated at I and pass out the under side of the housing. The connecting bar portion of the staple will be forced out the lower end of the raceway 20 by the continued downward movement of the plunger. It will therefore be evident that instead of the staple becoming jammed in the raceway by the prongs folding back into the raceway or wedging against the wall of the upper portion thereof, these prongs are carried free from the casing through the passages 3! while the connecting top bar 35 of the staple, which of itself will not jam in the raceway, is forced out by the plunger from the lower end of the raceway. Thus there is no jamming of the staple in the raceway or clogging of the machine as it clears itself automatically should a staple be fed in an improper position to the raceway under the plunger. If the staple is fed to the raceway in the proper upright position the prongs will pass downwardly in the raceway in the proper position for driving, the forward walls of the portions 32 of the guide bar forming a rear guiding means for the prongs.

To permit the cut off prongs to more easily pass out of the machine it is preferred that the lower portions of the passages 3| be cut more deeply than the upper portions as indicated by dotted lines 3Ia Fig. 4 so that these passages become deeper or expand downwardly and there is no danger of the cut off prongs becoming lodged therein. It is also preferred to make the lower portion of the front wall of the housing a separate element as indicated at 33, and it is secured by any suitable means such as screws 34 so that it may be easily removable for permitting 4 access to the lower end of the plunger or the front portion of the staple guide bar and knife edges 30.

Having thus set forth the nature of my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a staple driving machine, a housing having a raceway, a plunger movable in the raceway to drive a staple therein, a guide bar for guiding staples to the raceway, and an inverted V-shaped lug on the opposite sides of the barproviding knife edges at the rear side of the raceway to cooperate with the plunger to cut off the prongs of the staple in the raceway should they extend backward from the raceway.

2. In a staple driving machine, a housing havwardly so that they are wider at their lower ends to prevent jamming of the prongs in the passages.

CHARLES F. KUCH, JR. 

